FAQs

General

What are legal highs?

In the last 5-7 years there has been a huge number of new drugs with uncertain harms and effects. Some are stimulants, some hallucinogens, a few are anaesthetics, and others are synthetic cannabis. There has been a concerted attempt by manufacturers and suppliers to circumvent the law to sell these products. Some are very potent although the packaging may make them appear like some kind of party novelty. This website offers information about a whole range of drugs: legal highs, club drugs and more familiar drugs like cocaine, ecstasy and cannabis.

What is Angelus?

The aim of the Angelus Foundation is to educate, encourage and assist people to be more knowledgeable about the risks to their health and well-being of using ‘legal highs’ and all harmful substances, so they make better safer choices. Many young people still turn to their parents for advice on drugs. We want to stimulate conversations where the risks can be considered. There is a lot of ignorance about these new drugs, Angelus wants to see less risk taking and less harm in people’s lives.

Are legal highs as strong as other drugs?

Yes. Legal Highs can vary in strength, generally they are much purer than the traditional drugs such as ecstasy, cocaine. But there is no connection between strength and their legal status. The assumption that a legal drug means it is safe is a wrong and dangerous one.

Do people know what they are getting?

No. These substances, when bought from internet or headshops, are not labelled accurately. This is quite deliberate. If they are just sold in a wrap or a bag they could be a mixture of several drugs and adulterants. No-one should rely on the person selling the drug; his main motivation is selling more. Regular dealers may try and give more accurate information but the truth is they don’t know either.

Why are legal highs popular?

The Home Office commissioned an expert panel to study the phenomenon of legal highs and attributed their popularly to their legality, availability, price and purity. Club drugs which have been around for a while like cocaine and ecstasy became decreasingly pure a few years ago but have risen in strength again. Mephedrone, when it first became popular 2008-9, was almost entirely pure. It also cost only about £10 a gram which is about a quarter the price of cocaine.

Are they purer?

Generally, yes. Part of the reason drugs like Mephedrone gained popularity so rapidly was because it was almost pure at a time when ecstasy and cocaine had fallen to about 20 percent and even below 10 percent in some cases.

What are research chemicals?

This is the term used by suppliers to make them sound they legitimate. They are not for research purposes. There are several different kinds of legal highs, some are synthetic cannabis types, and others are stimulant powders which are for short hand known as research chemicals. Their action and harms are very unpredictable. Many headshops in the high street stock them and they can be bought from internet suppliers.

Are Legal Highs weaker?

No, not necessarily. The legal status of any substance has no relevance to its strength. There are some very powerful drugs such as synthetic cannabis which few people would expect to be so powerful. It is very easy to take too much and collapse. It is a toxic chemical made to look like natural weed. Many of the stimulants are very high purity but are often mixtures so their effects are quite unpredictable. There is little point in reading the ingredients on the packet.

Can you tell if people tell are high?

Drugs affect people in different ways but effects are very often obviously visible, particularly to someone who has not taken anything. Stimulants tend to make people more active or hyperactive. Cannabis can make the eyes bloodshot.

Where is a good place to get help?

There are many local centres where you could access some advice and/or treatment. Your GP may also be a good place to start.

How can anyone tell if someone is developing dependence?

The first signs of dependence are making choices in life which are simply about getting hold of more of a particular drug. Then the choices begin to harm work/study friends and family and yet it continues. Sleep patterns and general demeanour can change. People who are taking too much of any particular drug may start lying to people close to them and even stealing to help pay for their habit. It can cause some big arguments.

Taking the drug alone, means having reached another stage. Then the drug starts giving less pleasure and more is taken just to stop feeling bad. Moods will become dependant on whether the drug is available. There are likely to be physical signs as well. When someone starts supplying to friends to pay for their own habit then they are well on the way to developing an addiction.

How does Angelus get to know about new drugs?

We are advised by an expert Advisory Board who are in touch with the new developments in a rapidly evolving landscape. We are closely connected to many other organisations who share their intelligence. We also host with Solve-It a national conference on NPS/legal highs. We are in touch other scientists across Europe who are aware of all the new drugs being circulated.

Is cannabis use increasing?

No. The British Crime Survey shows cannabis use has fallen slowly and steadily since 1996. Among 16-24 year olds it is down by about a third in that period. There has been no proper research into this change; it may be a reaction against high strength skunk an attraction to other drugs or a general aversion to smoked products including tobacco.

What is difference between Mephedrone and Methadone?

These drugs are both powerful, synthetic controlled drugs but could hardly be more different in the effects and their physical appearance. Mephedrone is a strong, white powder stimulant. Methadone works as a sedative, is a green liquid used by addicts as a heroin substitute so there is also a risk of overdose.

How long do drugs stay in the system?

Most drugs pass through the system in a day or two – that would include ecstasy, cocaine and Mephedrone. Ketamine lasts a bit longer (3-5 days) and cannabis much longer (2-4 weeks). After that time the drugs will not be detectable in blood tests but there are always traces which remain in the hair.

Health & Risks

Are they are less risky?

Risk is based on information so on that basis these substances are more risky because much less is known about them. The key information needed to measure risk is: dose, speed of action, degree of effect, duration of effects. People taking them also need to ensure the right environment to be safe. Drugs can act faster, slower or more powerfully depending on whether they are swallowed or snorted, whether the person has eaten, drunk alcohol, how tolerant they are to it, even what mood they are in.

Are they safe if they are still legal?

There are simply too many drugs for the Government to ban immediately. So the law is not a good indicator on safety. The European Drug Monitoring Centre estimates there are about 100 new drugs coming out every year. They are not all available everywhere and some are hardly used. Perhaps a dozen or so come to UK. That is still too many to deal with by controlling them under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.

Are they addictive?

Yes many of them are. All drugs vary in addictiveness but most can be addictive if taken regularly and club drugs are no different. Any level of addiction is dangerous to long-term health. Addiction also changes your priorities where the drug becomes increasingly important over work/study, friends and family. Addiction also has a strong association with crime. There is little treatment available to those who have developed dependence to club drugs because there is little information on how they affect the brain and body.

Can people overdose on them?

Yes. Drug-related deaths very often involves more than one drug. Any drug can cause a very bad reaction. Some may be highly enjoyable for a time but that doesn’t mean taking more simply increases the amount of pleasure. It is easy to get to a critical point where the body or brain cannot cope and begins to shut down. Some drugs make body temperature rise dangerously and in a club environment, it is very hard to get it down. The temptation is to drink plenty of water which also can be very harmful. Most deaths from ecstasy are from water intoxication.

What are the particular harms of Mephedrone (M-Cat)?

Amphetamine stimulants accelerate the heart rate. Prolonged use increases the risk of damage to the heart particularly if mostly taken with alcohol. Combining it with alcohol can lead to blackouts where there is no recall of events for long periods. Taking alcohol and M-Cat can also lead to aggressive behaviour.

Taking mephedrone can cause a deep feeling of agitation, heart palpitations, skin rashes, insomnia, vomiting and headaches. Users who snort the drug can expect to get bad nose bleeds and facial ulcers. Those who chose to ‘bomb’ it may find they develop gastric burns in their stomach.

The link to mental health problems appears to be quite strong for heavy users. The ‘down’ on M-Cat can be very intense and several suicides have been linked to heavy use. The few detailed studies on it indicate taking it more than just very occasionally can result in repeat dosing. Heavy prolonged use eventually leads to severe addiction. Addicts are sleep deprived, often have ulcerated mouths and suffer significant weight loss.

Does anyone inject these drugs?

Yes. But injecting is very rare. Injecting drugs brings with it a whole different set of harms and dangers. Legal highs and club drugs are rarely injected, almost always snorted or bombed. Injecting without clean needles greatly increases the risk of blood borne viruses such as HIV and Hepatitis..

Can any of these legal highs be smoked?

The synthetic cannabis drugs are meant to be smoked. Salvia and DMT are also usually smoked. Any drug which can be smoked gets into the blood stream much quicker than if it is snorted or bombed. Their effects are very much stronger than normal cannabis even stronger than skunk. These drugs are not for the casual smoker many people may find this a really unpleasant experience. They can make the person quite insensible and cause vomiting, racing heart, paranoia and collapse.

Is cannabis addictive?

Yes, it can be. Casual smokers will not become addicted and it is less addictive than many stimulants and any opium based drug. But people can become psychologically dependent if they become heavy users. Physical addiction can build over some months and years but does not happen quickly. About five percent of people presenting for treatment, cite cannabis as their primary drug. It is estimated about 10 percent of cannabis smokers show signs of dependence.

What substances get mixed with these drugs?

Powders such as cocaine are often mixed with substances such as caffeine and lidocaine. They are known as adulterants which ‘bulk’ the dugs out. Tales of rat poison, ground glass and strychnine are largely myths.

What is a safe dose?

It is impossible to offer guidance on what amounts are safe. Many of these drugs have very varied strengths. If they are white-powdered stimulants then even a tiny amount can cause a bad reaction, particularly if that person is inexperienced. Generally speaking, the synthetic cannabis is much stronger than usual cannabis and can make you feel very trippy and very ill.

What does Ketamine do to your bladder?

The occasional use of Ketamine will, in all probability not harm your bladder. But regular users are taking a risk with addiction which can often lead to bladder problems – they can be severe and irreversible. Over time Ketamine, strips the lining of the bladder which is then passed in the urine. This is very painful. Anyone who finds they need to go to the loo more often and it hurts or they pass blood then they should seek help and stop taking it. Those who persist, find their bladders will shrink and harden and in some extreme cases become useless and a transplant required.

Is Ketamine a horse tranquiliser?

No, not as such. Almost every media report uses the term so it has become the short hand description. Ketamine is an anaesthetic used by vets before surgery on all sorts of animals. A tranquiliser is a drug such as valium. Ketamine is also used (rarely) medically in hospitals for severe and traumatic pain such as first degree burns or for amputation. It works because it is a dissociative which means it makes the person feel detached from what is happening to them like an out of body experience.

If Ketamine is so dangerous why do people take it?

It has been rising in use for 5-7 years. One of its attractions like many new drugs is that has higher purity than other more established drugs like ecstasy. It is taken at two different doses depending on how experienced the drug user is; the less experienced will take a relative small dose to feel some of the disassociative (out of body effects) and hallucinations, but people who take ketamine more regularly may take a bigger dose where they feel the full disassociation (K-Hole). To some, it may sound a novel experience but it can be highly disturbing with morbid feelings.

Which drugs can cause the body to overheat?

Some stimulants, particularly MDMA/Ecstasy, can cause the body’s temperature to soar. Often it is taken in a very hot club and it is not possible to control it easily, especially when the effects are a new experience. Not managing to get body temperature down, can damage the internal organs and leading you may physically collapse requiring medical help. The drug also makes people naturally thirsty. The temptation is to drink huge amounts of water which can be very harmful. Too much water affects the level of salts in your body and causes the brain to swell – it can be fatal. A substantial number of deaths associated from Ecstasy are from drinking too much water.

Why is GBL so dangerous?

GBL is a solvent used for industrial purposes. It requires very precise dosing. 3ml can make you collapse. You really have to know what you are doing. Any excess from a strict dose risks collapse. It is also extremely dangerous to take it after any amount of alcohol which can lead to coma or in some cases death. There are some people who find they GBL is their drug of choice. After a few weeks they can develop a very high level of dependence. Treatment is very problematic, it is in some ways like treating extreme alcoholism.

Can taking Mephedrone, make people feel a bit depressed the next day?

Generally speaking all stimulants can make people feel low after the ‘high’. Mephedrone appears to be associated with depression, particularly with people who have started taking it more regularly. Some try and recover their mood by taking more Mephedrone which is a bit of a vicious circle. Heavy users risk developing clinical depression or psychosis.

The Law

Are legal highs really legal?

Some are legal. Many are not. Headshops and internet suppliers mostly try and stay on the right side of the law. But it has been shown, after chemical analyses, that some are mixtures of legal and illegal substances. They can contain batches which include substances which have under temporary bans..

How long does it take to make a new drug illegal?

It used to take about 12 months but a new law in 2011 means the whole process can take just a few weeks. This linkto the Home Office explains how it works. The Psychoactive Substances Act will outlaw the supply from Spring 2016.

Will drugs ever be legalised or regulated in Britain?

Not in the foreseeable future. All political parties are opposed to relaxing controls. There are also international agreements which prevent it. There is some support in Parliament for adopting a Portuguese style experiment where all drugs were decriminalised in 2001; civil penalties and treatment are offered instead.

Why is ecstasy class A?

Ecstasy was controlled in 1977 and its effects were equated with LSD which was already a Class A drug. All the most prevalent hallucinogenic drugs (hypnotics) were made Class A when the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 was drawn up. This is at least in part because of international view of their harms at the time. They are now recognised by many scientists are considerably less harmful than addictive drugs like heroin. Hallucinogens are generally either not addictive or with low levels of addictiveness.

Why is cannabis class B drug?

Cannabis was moved from Class B to C in 2004 on advice from the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD). It meant people (18 and over) would no longer be arrested and get a criminal record. The intention was also to make education messages on drugs more credible by having a better grouping of drugs of equivalent harms. The decision was reversed in 2009 against ACMD advice.

Can employers force people to have a drug test at work?

Drug testing is written into some contracts of work. So everyone should know about it already. Employers would not normally spring a test on any of their staff without first raising concerns through HR. Any job which has some aspect of public safety will involve random testing for drink and drugs, such as public transport. Some financial institutions (particularly American) insist on a test at the beginning of the job.